Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Becoming your own advocate of improved health is easy. It is not difficult to take a minute or so each day to boost your immune system and vitalize your organs. Your body has been “defending” itself all your life, with or without your help, and it has generations of quality genes to help it along. What your body owns is natural wisdom. When you get a symptom of some ache or pain, a runny nose, tightness in your head or chest, your body is trying to get your attention! It doesn’t mean you are very ill, or damaged, not yet. The subtle energies of the body may not be in order. An ache or pain can be a message from the upper layer, the tendio-muscular-fascia layers, or it may go deeper, to organ energetic activity. If the imbalance has hit your organs, this is more serious; you really haven’t been listening.All healing is ultimately “self healing”. Why? Because along the way, day in and day out you have a choice to make. The choices you make have led you to today. Perhaps you all ready are a health advocate for yourself. There is still room for fine tuning. Choices are many. You can draw from herbs, homeopathic remedies, food, fasting, juicing, meditation, Yoga, Pilates, exercise, spending time in Nature, Acupuncture, massage, Shiatsu, chiropractic therapy and so forth. Your immune system needs regular vigor and spark. Effective attitudes and treatment strategies ultimately catalyze this spark. What do we mean by “healing”? To “fix” something is immediate and usually mechanically based. To “cure” something is to make the problem permanently go away. To “heal” something may or may not involve a fix or a cure, but healing delves into deeper regions of our matrix. Healing can be a change of attitude, a new approach in lifestyle, another way of being in the world. Healing leads to happiness.

STEPS TOWARD HEALING:

1. You are the most important member of your health care team! “The next major advance in the health of the American people will be determined by what the individual is willing to do for him or herself.” – John Knowles. Our bodies give us hints all the time – do you listen and respond appropriately? Or are you ignoring the messages? 2. When Nature Calls, Answer: Symptoms are the body’s signals that something is up, and we better start listening. Often these symptoms are responses the body makes in efforts to deal with stress, strain or infection. When we choose temporary solutions, like “pain killers” which suppress symptoms, or rush to get a quick fix from over the counter medications, and do not address the “root cause” of the ailment, we are actually working against our body instead of with it to promote wellness and healing. Pain is Nature’s way to get your attention that something is out of balance. Headaches, arthritis, menstrual cramps, neck pain are reporters. The challenge of any type of pain is to understand what it is saying. Give your pain positive feedback – accept the presenting challenge for positive change. “If you don’t come to terms with your shadow, it will appear in your life as your fate.” – Carl Jung

A SYMPTOM IS ANY PHENOMENON OR CIRCUMSTANCE ACCOMPANYING AN AILMENT AND SERVING AS EVIDENCE OF IT!

Undoubtedly, there is a mind-body connection with everything. Emotional and mental states have direct bodily effects and visa-versa. It isn’t always easy to discern which came first. That’s why it is important to TREAT THE WHOLE PERSON. Treating the whole person is the best health strategy. Treating the “whole person” means addressing the body, mind and emotions. They are all interconnected. Emotional and mental states have a direct correlation on bodily effects and the other way around.3. Seek Inner Wisdom:“Direct you eye inward and you’ll find 1,000 regions in your mind yet undiscovered.” – Henry David Thoreau. Some brain researchers consider the brain as a “filter of perception” not as an organ of perception. Your brain registers all manner of physical changes. When you relax, meditate or contemplate, you open up to your “inner wisdom”. Then you are better able to hear what your inner wisdom is saying to you. Help and answers come in various forms: a therapist, an animal, a book, yourself.4. Take Responsibility for Your Health: You can become better informed. Find new avenues to help yourself. But NEVER take blame for your disease. Guilt doesn’t help heal you, instead it causes stress. Become informed and take action. There is always some way to approach what you are experiencing. Being unwell can be a wake-up call, a learning tool, a quantum leap towards education and pursuit of a new profession. Nothing in your life happens in a vacuum. Everything means something. Taking action can mean trying another natural therapy. Getting a homeopathic remedy, or an herbal formula, incorporate a new culinary approach appropriate for your condition, exercise and stretching are just some tools for creating a healing path.

SOME METAPHYSICAL APPROACHES TO HEALING:

1. Take laughter seriously. Laughter releases endorphins into the blood stream, thus relaxing the body. It burns calories and boosts the immune system. Studies indicate people who laugh are healthier and have increased longevity. So lighten up!2. Relax, Yet Appreciate the “Right Type of Stress”. The Chinese character for “crisis” also means “opportunity” . When your body is giving out signals, when it is trying to get your attention by those little aches and pains, it is an opportunity to do something amazing and simply healing. Notice where you hold stress, do a life check. Don’t let the little things get to you. Head them off in time so they don’t cause “body impact”. Relax and move into purposeful Intention.3. Self Medicate with Self Esteem: A wonderful exercise to do for self-esteem is write by hand, and then say aloud 5 things you appreciate about yourself. Also say these nice things about yourself in front of a mirror. Begin with: “I appreciate about myself…” Do this exercise daily for 21 days. There is a body-mind connection. If you put a small value upon yourself, rest assured that the outside world will mirror this. Low self-esteem leads to lowered immunity, depressions, un-wellness. So SMILE! Endorphins release into your blood stream and boost your immunity!4. Follow Your Bliss. Do What You Love: Whatever Is Constructive Is Life Giving: Take your passion and make it happen. As long as what you love is helpful to you or others, it is valuable. Take time daily to reflect, meditate, contemplate, and relax. Just BE! The power of “Right Intention” creates. Thoughts create “Stuff”. Right Intention opens doors and makes things happen. Connect with the wide world around you. Commune with Mother Nature, feel her power. Let her work through you. Open to the Universe and all good things. Wear a shield of Wisdom and develop Self-Realization. Only then can we be in the world, but not have the collective negativity impact upon us and crushing us. For more information on healing and acupuncture, please visit my website at: lailawah.com.

Friday, January 29, 2016

There is a Chinese saying: “Sage
within, Kingliness without” This describes the quality which
radiates from a pregnant woman, for she is a bridge between Mind,
Body, Heaven, Earth and Child. A flow between Mind and Body permits
Spirit to openly express and be received. It is innocence without
blemish.

When a woman achieves this mystical
connection and is open to Heavenly Forces which channel through her
body and bring forth new life, a greater power prevails inside her
womb. For it is within this seal, the confinement of her womb, that
the Creative Principle manifests form. The womb readies itself to
develop human life, to house Form and Spirit, and creates, anew,
within each moment.

When all elements converge in a smooth,
rhythm, it creates greater mental and physical health. Pregnancy is
one of the most wondrous, complex and self-affirming experiences
which a woman can have. The renewal of life is wondrous, be it
human, animal or plant. Even mineral life is wonderful, but as homeo
sapiens we marvel at how a baby becomes our mirror.

A woman’s preparation for pregnancy
is a great journey. Often times, adequate preparation is often
limited or not provided for. Ideally both father and mother
lovingly prepare their minds and bodies with health, peace and
clarity before conception One year cleansing lifestyle is
considered a good preparatory time prior to conception. Ideally both
parents are eating a nutritional diet, exercising, and are free of
artificial substances, including caffeine, medications, and
definitely no nicotine or alcohol are consumed. Having a focus of
clarity and receptivity towards welcoming a new life into your world
is ideal. When parents have a spiritual practice together, meditate,
do Yoga or other calming activities, a bond of Spirit exists.

This is the ideal preparation, but not
the norm for most conceptions. However, we can strive towards the
goal which draws Harmony, Peace, Balance and Wellness into one’s
life, and the life of the coming child. At whatever point a woman
is in her pregnancy, she can create healthier conditions for herself
and baby.

The art and therapy of Shiatsu and
Acupuncture has much to offer towards achieving these ends of greater
health for mother and child. Nurturing touch harmonizes and
stimulates the organ systems of mother, and consequently baby as they
are united. Positive input to the mother enhances fetal life and
creates an environment which promotes delivery.

Along with the nervous system, the skin
develops from the ectoderm, the outermost of three embryonic skin
layers. Taste, smell, hearing, vision and touch as well as teeth and
hair all derive from the ectoderm. All external stimuli converge
upon the skin. Thusly, the skin may be regarded as an external
nervous system.

Developmental beginnings and every
experience of the individual’s life are recorded in the cellular
memory of our skin and deeper tissues. The skin is the largest organ
of the body. The skin continually provides information about its
environment both external and internal environments. As the skin develops its sensitivity depends upon
the type of stimulation it receives. In prenatal life the skin is
the first organ to completely develop. Embryologically, the earliest
function to develop is the most fundamental to the body.

In utereo experiences can emotionally
affect the fetus later in life. For example, if a pregnant woman is
trapped in an elevator and the elevator drops suddenly, the baby may
develop a fear of heights. But if the abdomen of the mother is
gently massaged, the sensations registered by the fetus create a
sense of well being.

Shiatsu and Acupuncture together are
excellent therapeutic tools for the pregnant woman. Shiatsu can be
given alone, or in combination with an Acupuncture treatment. In the
early trimester when a woman can still lie on her stomach, her
positioning is prone and supine. As the fetus develops and she can
no longer lie upon her stomach, lying on her side and back are the
positions chosen.

Gentle Shiatsu is given first, prior to offering Acupuncture as a means for kneading
and opening any tightened musculature or compressed vertebrae and
other joints. When treatments are received on an on-going basis,
once a week or bi-weekly, throughout the pregnancy the health of the
mother, and the outcome of an easier vaginal delivery can be assured.Acupuncture can be given on the back, legs, arms, feet, neck and head, but NOT THE ABDOMEN. When a woman is too enlarged for lying in a prone position, she lies on her side to receive Acupuncture on her back. Then she lies supine, on her back with a bolster under her legs. Points are used distally on arms, legs, feet, neck and head.

BENEFITS OF SHIATU &
ACUPUNCTURE TREATMENTS FOR THE PREGNANT WOMAN

Relaxes
the musculature and tonus

Increases blood and lymphatic circulation

Helps prevent edema

Stimulates Organ Systems of
both mother and child

Helps
decrease or eliminate morning sickness

Ensures improved circulation to the limbs to
help deter varicose veins